(Not so)Friendly Vengeance
by HumanBarricade
Summary: After the Green Goblin created the Sinister Six and Spider-man beat them, Peter Parker healed Harry Osborn. Ever since Gwen's death the two have had a strained and broken friendship. Peter yearns for revenge, but is also in need of something from his old childhood friend. TASM universe. Violence, language, drugs/alcohol, and mild sexual themes.
1. Chapter 1

Deep in thought, Harry stood outside leaning against the railing of his balcony. Sometimes the noise outside helped him drown out his undesirable thoughts. Tonight not even the noise of constant passing cars and bustling people could get his mind off what he had done almost a year ago. He never wanted to let himself dwell on the thought that he killed someone.

Frustrated and ashamed, he threw the glass of scotch in his hand on the floor of the balcony. It shattered into a few large pieces and many smaller ones. The ice blended in with the glass shards. Amber liquid lay in a puddle. Once again he used destruction as an outlet.

He sighed and sat down in a chair. Breaking the glass left him without any alcohol to put his thoughts to rest. Feeling a headache coming on, he began to rub his temples. A flash of red and blue landed with a thud in front of him.

"What the hell do you want?" Harry asked Spider-Man, letting his hands fall to the chair's armrests and glaring at the masked vigilante.

"I want to talk to you," Spider-Man replied. "Inside would be better."

Harry scoffed at Spider-Man's suggestion. He knew Peter wanted to talk face to face without his hero get-up. Although he too would have preferred that, Harry wouldn't dare let Peter get his way with anything.

"I'm not moving," Harry protested, leaning back in his chair.

"Do you have to be such an ass all the time?" Spider-Man asked, gesturing towards Harry.

Harry mocked, "You came all the way over here just to tell me what an ass I am? I already pay people to do that so don't waste my time."

"So you're admitting that you're an ass?" Spider-Man asked with a rather happy tone.

"Tell me what you really want or I'm leaving," Harry growled, starting to stand.

"Okay, okay," Spider-Man replied, gaining a more serious tone. "I want to talk to you about Gwen."

The urge for a drink only grew. Harry's gaze fell down to the table. Every other time they tried to talk about Gwen it always ended with Peter unbelievably furious and Harry beat to a pulp.

"What do you want me to say?" Harry asked, trying his best to sound cold and not let his voice crack.

"I want to know why you took her from me."

Harry felt his stomach drop. He couldn't let his guilt get the best of him. Peter wanted to force him into a corner.

"Like I said a thousand times before, it was an accident," Harry stated bluntly.

"You still killed her," Spider-Man shot, his fists balling up.

"I'm only partially responsible," Harry mumbled.

"Partially?!" Spider-Man shouted, seizing the collar of Harry's shirt. "You little shit, don't try to pin this on me again. You killed her. How is that my fault?"

Harry gave him a venomous look. Pissed off, he pulled his shirt out of Spider-Man's grip.

Harry pointed to himself and stated, "I'm not the one who couldn't catch her."

"YOU FUCKING PRICK!" Spider-Man yelled at Harry, followed by punching him in the side of his face.

Harry fell onto his back. He felt some shards from the glass he threw earlier bury themselves in his back. As he tried to sit himself up, more ended up in his palms. He swore under his breath from the stinging feeling they caused. His cheek began to swell slightly from the punch.

"How can you just blame me?" Spider-Man shot again but with less ferocity. "You know, I didn't even want her to be there."

"And you think I did? I had no idea you were Spider-Man at the time and I didn't expect Gwen to be there, too," Harry answered, clearly sick of the argument.

Spider-Man looked in Harry's direction but refused to look at him directly. Harry bit his lip as he pulled a shard of glass out of his left palm. He held in a need to yell from the pain. Noticing blood, he squeezed his palm into his shirt.

"Um, I'm sorry about the glass," Spider-Man apologized with a sigh. "I wouldn't have punched you in that direction if I knew it was there."

Harry glared up at him. He couldn't believe Peter had given up so easily. No, he just wanted a break. They both did.

"You still would have punched me," Harry groaned, standing up.

Each shard in his back felt like a needle moving under his skin. This is what he imagined acupuncture was like. Spider-Man still lingered away from Harry, a hero refusing to help.

Harry stretched uncomfortably and added, "If we're done here, I need to go have all of these stupid glass shards plucked out of my back."

"You say it like I enjoy seeing you this way," Spider-Man commented grimly, looking over at Harry.

Harry shot, "Don't you? Isn't that why you drop by every time you happen to be in the area? Every time you 'just want to talk.' Sometimes I think you just want revenge. Either that or a punching bag."

Harry half expected him to laugh after the last line. Instead Spider-Man looked away distantly. His hands balled up into fists.

"You killed my girlfriend. What did you expect me to do?" he asked.

The pain in Harry's back only grew worse every time he moved or shifted. He didn't want to focus on Peter's question so he focused on his physical pain instead.

"I would love to give several counterarguments but I need medical attention and have a meeting tomorrow. If it's all the same to you, could we please continue this later?" Harry complained as he walked over to the door.

Usually he feared being at the mercy of Spider-Man, but tonight Peter seemed to have lost his edge.

"Ugh," Spider-Man moaned, pinching the bridge of his nose under his mask. "Fine. But only because I just came back from a pretty tiring battle."

Harry let himself grin as he turned his back to Spider-Man.

"Great," he said somewhat sarcastically.

"Wonderful," Spider-Man replied in an annoyed manner.

He left with a thwip and a swish. Harry let out a huge sigh. He'd escaped Spider-Man, but for how long? Peter always came when it suited him. At least he never interrupted the stupid Oscorp meetings and such.

As he opened the door, his guilt began to settle. He could never let Peter know how guilty he really felt, especially not if he remained in his irrational mood. Maybe he deserved what Peter kept doing to him. That didn't mean he had to let it happen.

Slowly, he edged over to the nearest couch. He leaned his side against the back of it. Blood from his hands smeared on the probably expensive fabric.

He remembered past fights he and Peter had. After he had been cured the physical fighting became one sided. How could Harry defend himself from spider strength? Maybe if he had a gun… No, he didn't desire to kill Peter. At least he didn't anymore. If only he could get Peter to see reason or forgive him or something.

That first fight was such a blur. Everything happened so fast and he felt like he wasn't 'all there' at the time. He didn't even know Gwen was dead until days after. Peter never visited or talked to him for several months afterwards.

The stupid Green Goblin in him at the time decided to once again try for revenge. He remembered having the Sinister Six assembled. All those psychos he barely knew fighting Spider-Man for such petty reasons. He was one of them.

Peter still hated Harry, but he cured him in the end. After he was deemed sane and Menken had been found out for the fraud he was, Harry got the company he never wanted in the first place back. Good old Oscorp had been through a lot. He had been through a lot.

Remembering his injuries, Harry began to walk towards the hallway. The shards only stung if they were disturbed. He tried his best not to move too quickly. Soon enough, one of his butlers noticed him limping around the mansion and quickly took him to the nearest hospital.

He felt as though his injuries were hardly worthy of being treated at a hospital, but his butler and chauffeur persuaded him to think otherwise. When they asked him what had happened Harry brushed it off, but when he got to the hospital he finally had to give some sort of reason. He claimed that he dropped his glass of Scotch, slipped, and fell onto the broken glass. Whether anyone believed him or not he didn't know. He just wanted to leave as soon as possible.

Once every last shard had been removed and the cuts disinfected, he was finally taken back home. He changed into night clothes, pressed an icepack to his swollen cheek, and poured himself another glass or two of scotch. The buzz from the alcohol helped dull the pain. It also shut-out his thoughts. He fell asleep on his side, trying not to cause his cut-up back to sting again.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry awoke to the sound of a blaring alarm clock. The sound made his head throb. Groggily, he forced himself to sit up and turn off the stupid thing. Pain shot through his back like spikes. As quickly as he felt it, he remembered what had happened last night. He made a mental note to find some way to keep Peter from showing up so often.

He usually could dress himself, but today he knew he needed help with the countless stinging cuts on his back. One of Harry's butlers helped him get dressed for his meetings while the other brought him some pills for his pain. He kindly reminded Harry that they were not to be taken with alcohol. Harry took them with a glass of water, knowing that a large part of his headache was from Peter punching him and not a hangover.

The chauffeur drove him to Oscorp in his fancy limo. It bugged Harry how he kept glancing at him in his mirror. He hadn't bothered to look in the mirror this morning so he had no idea how he looked. Once he arrived at Oscorp, Felicia gave him her typical knowing look. He trudged over to the elevator with her.

When she began to glance at him he grumbled, "I don't want to talk about it."

"I know," she sighed. "I just wanted to point out that you're late."

Harry smirked and asked, "Are the investors getting antsy?"

"You're only late by a couple minutes. I have someone stalling them like you asked."

"And who might that be?"

Felicia waited until they entered the elevator to answer, "His name is Jordan. He's an intern who can go on for hours about Oscorp's research."

She then told the elevator which floor to bring them to. Harry leaned against the railing as it started to move.

"Perfect. That should make them disinterested."

"Harry-" she began, before he glared at her.

"Mr. Osborn," she corrected herself. "Are you sure you want to go through with this plan of yours?"

"I'm positive," he replied coldly, turning away from her.

Neither dared interact with the other the whole ride up. Felicia exited the elevator first once the doors opened. Harry took his sweet time pushing himself off from the railing and following her.

"How long have I been late now?" he asked, wishing he had a watch.

Felicia pulled out her phone and replied, "Just over ten minutes now."

He cursed under his breath. Maybe he should have set his alarm clock to wake him up late. It didn't matter now. His plan wouldn't work unless he arrived questionably late.

"That's not enough," Harry groaned while pinching the bridge of his nose, his painkillers barely starting to kick in.

"I know, that's why we're at your office. I'll update you on our newest breakthroughs, research, and such," she informed.

"Actually, I'll check it out myself. You go check on the meeting and come back in no less than half an hour to tell me what's happening. Look as nervous as possible."

"All right, I understand," she agreed, before walking back to the elevator.

 _Good_ , he thought. He didn't need Felicia to stare at him for half an hour with that look in her eyes that resembled a one-way mirror. She could know everything about him from just a look, but even when she joined his super villain group as the Black Cat she still remained as mysterious as she was as Felicia. He was glad that she hadn't been caught. If he didn't know any better he would've guessed that she was a secret agent of sorts.

He nodded to a couple guards as he entered his office and made his way to his desk. Pulling out the key from his coat pocket, he smiled as some of his pain started to subside. Even so, he carefully sat down so that his back didn't touch the chair.

"Let's see, what do we have here?" Harry mumbled to himself as he opened up a folder on his desk/computer screen.

A few pictures and logs came up on organic liquid-metal alloys. Hardly any experiments had been tried at this point. The alloy could theoretically be used as armor, but so far it was just a manipulatable puddle of metal. Apparently, the metal had been found in a meteor from an unknown (or rather undisclosed) location. It was possible that it could be a new element, but Harry wouldn't get his hopes up. He figured it was something that was normally produced synthetically, but that his scientists had managed to get their hands on the real deal.

Lost in his work, he hardly noticed the door to his office open. By the time the person approached his desk, Harry finally looked up. The first thing he noticed was beat up jeans, then a tee-shirt obscured by an olive green jacket, and lastly a face he wished he could forget.

"Peter? How did you-? Why are you here?" he asked, completely baffled and caught off guard.

Peter grinned and replied, "I was just in the neighborhood and I thought I'd drop by."

"Yeah, right. What do want?" Harry asked, not buying the excuse.

"I'm running low on web fluid and I've been taking it from Oscorp all this time. You guys must have moved the stash because I cannot find it anywhere," Peter claimed, walking around the desk to see what Harry was looking at.

Harry pulled off the key and stuffed it into his pocket. The screen went blank and the desk appeared like normal glass.

"You do realize that we had to kill the spiders, right? That means no more web fluid," he sighed.

"I know, but there's no way I went through all that was left that quickly. You had crates full of that stuff last time I checked."

"I don't know where it went, Pete, and I honestly don't care. Don't you have better things to do? Go take pictures of yourself, sell them, and use the money to make your own damn webs," Harry whined, standing up.

"You aren't even using it so why are you hiding it from me?" Peter asked, cutting Harry off.

The gesture angered Harry and as much as he wanted to push Peter out of his way, he knew better.

"Why should I help you after what you did to me? I had to find my own cure so go find your own webs," Harry shot.

"I did cure you in the end, Har. Did you forget that? I'm not asking for forgiveness or for you to be nice to me or even a thank you. I just want my web fluid and I'll go."

Harry groaned and backed away from Peter. He knew Peter wouldn't leave him alone either way. And Peter couldn't touch him here. Guards stood outside his door. There were cameras everywhere. If Peter tried any spider stuff he'd get caught easily.

"I don't know where they are and I don't have time to check. I have a meeting, remember?" Harry stated as he made his way to the door.

"A very convenient meeting that you keep mentioning yet not going to, right? I saw it on the way up. Everyone is there except you, even Felicia. That surprised me. Why are you avoiding it?" Peter asked from behind Harry.

"It's none of your business."

Harry walked out the door and went straight for the elevator. Peter casually strolled beside him.

"Why would the CEO of Oscorp miss such an important meeting? I know about zilch on business and even I know that's weird."

"Is annoying me another way of getting revenge?" Harry asked as the elevator door closed.

"Revenge? No… I was just curious," Peter replied, almost sounding genuine.

The two stood in silence for a while after Harry gave the elevator a floor number.

"It's not like you to be late to meetings," Peter mumbled.

"How would you even know that?" Harry shot.

Holding up his hands, Peter replied, "You're being overly defensive about this, Har. Plus I know stuff."

"We're not friends anymore. I don't have to tell you anything," Harry said, glaring at Peter.

"Okay then," Peter sighed, finally giving up.

Another moment of silence passed between them. Peter then began to giggle silently.

"What?" Harry asked, looking over at Peter.

"I was just wondering if you and Felicia were a thing," Peter stated casually.

"Why would you think that?"

"You two are around the same age, she's attractive, and she's single. There's no way you don't have your eyes on her. She works for you and you see her a lot. How can you not think about her? So tell me, is there something going on between you two?"

"Peter, she's my personal assistant," Harry stated, before putting on a mischievous grin. "Of course there's something going on between us."

Peter gasped and covered his mouth. There were so many questions to ask, so many jokes to make.

"What? Really?" he asked, hardly able to contain himself.

"No," Harry replied, losing his grin and gaining his glare.

"You little—you really lead me into that one," Peter grumbled, crossing his arms.

"I'm not going to pull a Tony Stark and date my personal assistant just so I can dump the company on her so that I can go do whatever my billionaire heart desires. I might be a jerk sometimes but definitely not to that degree."

"All right, all right, that's what I get for bugging you about your personal life," Peter kind of laughed off. "Still no web fluid?"

"Drop it," Harry groaned, rubbing his temples.

 _So much for those painkillers. They hardly lasted_ , he thought to himself. The elevator doors opened to reveal Felicia clutching a tablet to her chest.

"Mr. Osborn," she greeted, completely ignoring Peter. "The investors are waiting for you."

"I'll be right in," Harry assured and then added, "Could you escort him out?" he gestured towards Peter.

"Of course," Felicia replied, glancing at Peter.

Harry made his way around her and walked towards the boardroom. Felicia entered the elevator with Peter and told it to bring them to the ground floor.

Peter awkwardly looked down at his shoes before asking, "So, how has Harry been?"

Felicia didn't shift. She had expected a silent trip down.

"He's fine," she stated bluntly.

Both knew that wasn't true. Peter eyed the back of her head and then her reflection on the glass of the elevator. He couldn't tell what she was thinking. Her lack of body language and actual talking were really off-putting to him.

"That's good," he mumbled.

 _Maybe she knows where the web fluid is. She's Harry's personal assistant, of course she knows where everything is_ , Peter thought to himself.

"It's a real shame you guys got rid of those spiders," he said in a slightly sad manner. "My dad helped make them, you know?"

"You don't say?" Felicia replied, either sarcastic or uninterested.

"Yeah, when I was little I always dreamed about coming here to work with him. He worked so hard on making those spiders and now— _poof—_ they're gone. It's like all his work was for nothing."

Felicia stayed silent. He couldn't straight up ask her for the web fluid. If only he could get her to bring it up. Unluckily for him, she didn't seem to be a talker.

"You don't happen to have any of the spiders left, do you?" he asked, looking up at her.

"No. They're all gone."

"Even their venom and webs and whatnot?"

Peter tightly gripped the railing in the elevator. He hoped she wouldn't find that question suspicious.

"What are you getting at?" she asked, looking back at him with a glare starting to form.

"I-I just wanted something to remember him by. To know that he actually did something," Peter replied, surprised by a new expression on her face.

"You'd have to ask Harry," she sighed and turned back around.

Peter mentally cursed to himself. _Loyal to Harry, huh? Would he really fire you for giving me web fluid?_ he thought.

"We're not exactly on great terms," Peter stated, looking down at his feet again and leaning against the side of the elevator.

"Are you the one who punched him?" Felicia asked, turning to half face him.

Caught off guard, Peter kept his gaze down. He hated how she figured him out so quickly. Just as he was about to form a response the elevator doors opened.

"I have to go," he forced, darting out the elevator and slowing down once he reached the entrance.

A sigh escaped him. His running probably answered Felicia's question. She had to have wanted to punch Harry before, too. She was just smart enough not to.

He knew he couldn't try to enter Oscorp again anytime soon. It didn't surprise him that Harry refused to give him the web fluid, though it didn't frustrate him any less. Maybe Harry didn't care about him, but what about the people he saved as Spider-Man? How could he do his job without it?

Peter looked back at the grand building for a moment. All of his troubles originated from there. He began to remember how Gwen worked there, but quickly shoved the memory out of his sight. All he wanted was the web fluid.


	3. Chapter 3

"Finally, that damn meeting is over," Harry groaned after the last investor left the boardroom.

He stood and stretched his arms just enough to relieve his discomfort but not pull on the cut up skin on his back. Sitting without letting his back touch the chair was more uncomfortable than he thought.

"There's something I need to tell you," Felicia began, also standing up. "Your friend asked about those spiders Oscorp killed off. He also asked about their venom and webs."

"What did you tell him?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I told him that he'd have to ask you."

Harry grinned and began walking towards the door. Felicia followed beside him.

"Good. I'll talk to him about that later. Oh, while we're on that topic, how did he get in?" Harry asked, turning to face her.

"You never notified Oscorp's security detail to take him off the list of people allowed to come in without a name card. The receptionist must have looked him up in our system, seen his picture and name, and let him in," she replied, not looking up from her tablet.

Rubbing his face, he sighed and instructed, "Right, I never got around to taking him off that. He can still come in, but limit it to all floors above ground and below the boardroom. I don't want him showing up in my office again unannounced."

"All right, I'll get that done now," Felicia assured, doing the action through her tablet.

The two entered the elevator and began descending to the ground floor. Felicia remained seemingly focused in on her tablet while Harry leaned against the railing.

Harry remembered when he had Peter come to see him at Oscorp almost a year ago. He practically begged Peter for help with his disease. Spider-Man's blood had to be the cure and Peter was the only one who could find him. Instead, Peter ended up being him.

"He betrayed me," Harry whispered, remembering how Spider-Man, how Peter refused to help him.

"Hmm?" Felicia asked, looking up from her tablet and knowing exactly what Harry uttered.

"It's nothing," he brushed off. "I think I need a vacation."

A half-frown formed on Felicia's face for a slight second. Harry shrugged back before she continued with her tablet. He felt like he needed to get out more. Drinking and moping at home and working at Oscorp all week weren't much fun. Harry needed a party.


	4. Chapter 4

Approaching a large modern-looking house, Harry could feel vibrations from the music inside while in his limo. A crowd of people scattered themselves on the stairs leading to the front door. His chauffeur opened his door and a wave of confidence struck him. He exited the car and then sauntered over to the stairs. Some security guards pushed away the obviously uninvited wannabes to clear a path for him and the other guests.

"You're looking good, Harry," a rich and sleazily dressed woman flirted from beside him.

"Nice try," he replied with a smirk. "But I'm not into women married to my competition."

She took a couple steps in front of him and shot back, "I divorced that bastard months ago, whatever, your loss."

A smirk made its way onto his lips. He loved calling out people trying to use him. After years of people manipulating him, or attempting to do so, he knew all their tricks. He didn't come to this party so people could try to suck up to him. He'd rather shoot them down as soon as possible.

Entering the house, he noticed all kinds of rich and famous people talking, drinking, and the like. The loud music almost shook the house along with people dancing. Colorful flashing lights lit up the makeshift dance floor. A caterer approached him with a tray of shot glasses. Harry plucked two off with both of his hands. He downed both in succession. The pleasant buzz made the music more enjoyable.

A tanned girl with bleached blond hair made her way through the crowd to him. Her chartreuse and black dress accentuated her curves. She gave him a perfect white smile.

"I don't believe we've met before, I'm Lily Hollister," she greeted, waving her hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Harry Osborn. Isn't your father running for mayor?" he asked, setting down his empty shot glasses on a nearby table.

"Yes, he is, but I didn't come to this party to talk about him. I hoped I could get a break from his campaign for a while," Lily confided.

"Funny, I came here looking to get away from Oscorp," Harry added, taking a couple more shot glasses as another caterer passed by.

He handed her one and she took it happily. They both drank the shots. After disposing of their shot glasses, Harry had an idea.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked, holding out his hand and taking a step towards Lily.

"I'd love to," she replied, taking his hand.

He led her through the thick crowd and to the dance floor. It seemed like hundreds of other dancing people surrounded them. Here, in the middle of the crowd, the music made it impossible for Harry to hear his own thoughts. As he turned to face his partner he noticed a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Lily pulled herself closer to Harry and half shouted to him through the music, "You better be a better dancer than the last guy. Otherwise I won't hesitate to ditch you."

Harry smirked and replied, "We'll see about that."

The two began swaying their shoulders and then their entire bodies. Lily gave him an approving smile. Harry took her hand, swirled her around a couple times, and pulled her close. She playfully hip bumped him away and beckoned him to follow her. Laughing a bit, he followed. She led him close to one of the speakers and started dancing with him again.

"I can't hear anything over this music," he shouted.

"What?" she shouted back.

They both broke out laughing, he knew that for sure. Soon the song changed to something slower and quieter. Lily closed the space between them like a magnet sticking to a fridge. He blushed a deep red and took her hand.

"You wouldn't happen to have a girlfriend, would you?" she asked, her face dangerously close to his.

He could feel her warmth and her voice. Confidently, he led her into a waltz.

"No. I'm guessing you don't have a boyfriend," he replied.

"Then I don't suppose you'd mind…" she trailed off as she kissed him.

Harry kissed Lily back without a second thought. The alcohol on her breath just made him want her more. Soon they parted. She noticed his reaction and caressed his cheek.

"You're way better than that other guy," she whispered in his ear, her breath gently grazing his neck.

"Who?" he asked, pretending she hadn't mentioned him earlier.

They both laughed again. She leaned her head on his shoulder as they continued to dance. He couldn't remember the last time he'd enjoyed himself like this. Then again, all he wanted to focus on was this moment and no other.

"Lily?" he asked, as the song started to reach its end.

"Yes, Harry?" she replied, looking up at him with blackish-brown eyes.

"Do you want to get something to drink?"

"Hmm," she half giggled. "You're quite the drinker."

"It's the only way I can enjoy the music," he joked.

He held her hand while they weaved through the crowd. Once they reached the bar, he ordered a couple of random vodka spritzers for him and Lily. While they waited, they sat in a couple of barstools next to each other.

"So," he began. "Do you come to parties like this often?"

"Only when I need a break from the campaign," she replied, putting her hand over his on the bar surface. "You wouldn't mind telling me a little about Oscorp, would you?"

"It's boring, trust me. All I really ever do is go to meetings with cranky old men."

She smiled and leaned closer to him. He thought about kissing her again.

"Oh come on, it can't be that bad. You would've left by now."

"Maybe," he drifted off before pulling her into a kiss.

Closing her eyes, Lily put her hands around the back of Harry's neck. He put his arms around her to keep her from falling backwards off of her stool.

"Get a room!" some random girl in a pink dress shouted at them from the edges of the dance floor.

Lily pulled away from Harry, looked over at the girl, and flipped her off.

"Fuck off, Nancy!" Lily shouted back. "This is why guys hate you!"

Harry erupted into a fit of laughter. Lily blushed and turned back towards him. Her arms folded in a tense way.

"Is she a friend of yours?" he asked, trying to cover his mouth from all the laughing.

"Not if she keeps acting like this," Lily replied teasingly, her smile returning.

The bartender returned with their spritzers. They took their glasses, clinked them, and took a sip of the drink.

"Mm, blueberry was a good choice," she hummed.

Harry drank the beverage much faster than Lily. The vodka slightly burnt at his throat on the way down, but he didn't mind. He enjoyed not thinking about anything but Lily. He hoped the alcohol would keep it that way.

"That was really good," he agreed, setting the empty glass on the bar.

"Wow," she giggled. "I like a man who can handle his drinks."

She set down her half empty glass and pulled him closer to her. Her blond locks framed her face and shoulders in a flirtatious manner.

"Hey, Harry," she whispered, bringing her face close to his. "Maybe she was right about us needing a room."

His face flushed red yet he kept his calm. Her lips met his for a mere second.

"You wouldn't want to do that at a house full of people," he warned, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Then how about we go to your place," she suggested, stroking his hair.

"Sounds good to me."

The two made their way to the door, Harry mostly using Lily for support. He could walk, but not exactly in a straight line. His chauffeur opened the limo door for the two to enter. Harry awkwardly fell onto the seats on his back with Lily on top of him. She didn't seem to mind. On the way to his house, she playfully planted unexpected kisses on his neck and whispered sweet nothings in his ear.

Ooos and aahs escaped her mouth once she entered the Osborn mansion. She practically dragged Harry up the stairs while he tried to give random backstories for every piece of décor they saw on the way.

"Come on, Harry," she coaxed, tugging on his arm.

"Oh, that painting. That's…I don't even remember," he laughed. "I think it's fake. No, maybe the other is."

Lily rolled her eyes and smiled nonetheless. Harry used the walls to make his way to the living room. Lily gave him a strange look as he stopped. His vision looked all fuzzy.

"I-I need to sit down," he breathed, staggering to the couch.

He plopped onto the couch and laid down on it. Just as his dizziness began to subside, Lily laid down on top of him.

"Don't forget about me," she reminded, playfully touching his nose.

"Sorry," he yawned. "I'm a little tired."

She frowned. Tilting her head, she caressed his cheek again. He smiled. As much as he wanted her, he felt like he could barely keep his eyes open. She began to kiss him. He put his hands around her waist, but his grip quickly loosened.

"Harry?" she asked, looking down at him.

His eyes closed and his hands fell limp. She pouted, realizing that he'd fallen asleep.

"This isn't how I thought my night would go, but whatever it works for me," she mumbled to herself.

She scooted herself down so that her head lay on his chest. His steady breathing helped her drift off to sleep with him.


	5. Chapter 5

Slowly, Lily's eyes opened to harsh rays of sunlight gleaming in her face. She groggily rubbed her face and accidentally fell off the couch. Catching herself with her leg, she managed not to fall completely or to wake Harry. Her head began to hurt ever so slightly. She stood herself up steadily and looked around at the room. Noticing Harry's cell phone on the table, she picked it up with a smile.

 _I'm sure he won't mind if I leave my number_ , she thought. Lily attempted to unlock his phone, but it didn't have a passcode. She pouted. The only other way to unlock the phone was to use a fingerprint. She glanced down at Harry, sound asleep and hands resting at his sides. Perfect.

Quietly, she knelt down next to him. Taking his right hand, she held his index finger to the print reader on the phone. It unlocked. She almost yanked on his hand from the excitement, but stayed calm and set his hand back on the couch. After a much needed victory sigh, Lily went to contacts and added her number.

She thought about taking a picture of herself for the contact, but decided against it when she saw how horrible she looked in the camera. Maybe she hadn't gotten as drunk as Harry, but she didn't look any better. Her hair fell all out of place, her make-up smeared in odd ways, and the look on her face clearly stated that she was hungover. _I'll send him a picture later_ , she assured herself. Lily carefully set Harry's phone back on the table. She collected all of her belongings and began to leave until something, or rather someone, stopped her.


	6. Chapter 6

Peter woke up early to his alarm clock. He smiled, realizing that he hadn't smashed it to bits like the first few he bought during his college year. After eating breakfast, brushing his teeth, and showering, he pulled on his Spider-Man suit, grabbed his backpack, and embarked on an early morning patrol of the city.

Swinging through sleek skyscrapers and nearly hitting every obstacle in sight always helped Peter focus on something other than his personal troubles. With the wind in his face, ears, and basically everywhere else he could enjoy himself. His alter ego, Spider-Man, always gave him new outlets to take his anger out on. He didn't beat on criminals just because; he did it to stop them. Besides, he didn't _do_ overkill. He never let himself get too carried away, unless it involved Harry Osborn and Gwen Stacy.

Spider-Man landed effortlessly on the edge of a building that overlooked a large portion of Manhattan. He didn't want to let himself think, but he couldn't help it. He was only human after all. What he did to Harry, was that really overkill? He couldn't know for sure. Didn't he deserve that for killing Gwen? One part of him answered yes while the other answered no. Peter held his masked head in his hands.

"I don't need this," Peter growled through his mask.

He jumped off the building and made a thwipping motion to create a web to swing from. Unfortunately, no web thwipped. Panicking, he tried a second time. He imagined splatting against the pavement below. _No webs?! Wait, no webs. HARRY_ , Peter angrily thought to himself before thwipping with his left web shooter instead. It worked. He sighed with relief and used the web to crash land on top of a shorter building.

Spider-Man tumbled onto the roof, ripping several small holes in his costume. He felt a couple scrapes on his knees, elbows, and hands. If he hadn't gotten so many from learning to skateboard, he would have reacted to the pain a lot more. Instead, he winced and stood. He quickly put on some normal clothes over his suit and threw his gloves, boots, and mask into his backpack.

After getting down to street level, he took a cab to Harry's house. The traffic gave him time to cool down a bit. He knew that if he could count on his web shooters he would have been to Harry's house and back ten times by now.

Once he did arrive, he knew he couldn't just climb in through a window. He noticed countless maids and butlers cleaning inside. Peter had almost grown accustomed to entering every place through a window rather than the door. Reluctantly, he knocked on the large front door.

A butler opened the door after a few minutes passed and greeted, "Good morning, sir, can I help you?"

"I came by to see Harry," Peter answered sheepishly. "Is he home?"

The butler eyed him. He could always count on his social awkwardness with strangers to make him not seem like a punk kid. At least he hoped so.

"Mr. Osborn requested that you should never enter his mansion under any circumstances. If you do, I'm afraid we'll have to have security escort you out," the butler answered before promptly slamming the door in his face.

Peter blinked a couple times. Harry wouldn't even think about letting him in? He never wanted to see him? Peter found this hard to believe. He understood Harry hating him, but it's not like he had anyone else to talk to. Peter was the closest thing Harry had to a friend and he was just going to shut him out? He remembered Harry being the desperate type. Regardless of Harry obviously wanting nothing to do with him, Peter needed web fluid and he wouldn't give up until he got it.

He noticed a window on the first floor that was cracked open. After looking inside and making sure no one saw him, he climbed inside. Quietly, he snuck over to the stairs. He found himself looking straight up at a woman who looked like she'd drank too much the night before.

She looked down at Peter from halfway down the stairs and said, "Harry is still asleep."

All Peter could do was stare at her. Her tight dress didn't hide much. Why did Harry have some skank at his house? He thought for sure Harry and Felicia were a thing, or were going to be. The woman smiled as she passed him and left out the front door.

 _Okay_ , he thought. _She said Harry was asleep. I'll just wait for him to wake up, get dressed, and come out to eat breakfast. Then I can talk to him._

Peter snuck up the stairs. He made sure no butlers, maids, or anyone else saw him as he made his way to the living room. If he waited there Harry would show up eventually. Once he walked over to the couches he stopped dead in his tracks. A sleeping Harry lay on a couch in front of him. He still wore his party clothes, presumably from last night.

Slowly, he sat down in a couch perpendicular to the one Harry slept in. He had a lot of questions about that woman he saw earlier, but he mostly cared about the web fluid and why Harry refused to give it to him. Harry's personal life could wait. Sick of waiting for the most likely hungover billionaire to wake up, Peter kicked the couch. It moved a couple inches. Harry shifted and rubbed his eyes. Groaning, he sat up. Once he noticed Peter, he glared at him.

"I expected to wake up to a pretty girl, not _you_ ," Harry spat.

"A pretty girl, huh? She wouldn't happen to be a bleached blond in a chartreuse dress, would she? She left," Peter replied, smiling.

"Did you break in here?" Harry asked, rubbing his head.

The last thing he wanted to deal with was Peter and his stupid problems. His hangover only made it worse. Almost everywhere seemed to hurt, or maybe his headache was just getting to him.

Peter held up his hands and answered, "I didn't break anything. I just came to ask for the web fluid."

"That again? Ugh, it's the weekend. I'm not going to Oscorp today."

"I wouldn't ask if I didn't need it. I was on a patrol this morning and nearly fell to my death because I ran out. Luckily my other web shooter still had some fluid."

"What a news story that would have been," Harry sighed.

Peter expected Harry to openly wish he died, but the way he answered didn't exactly express that. It seemed more neutral, between wishing it had happened and thankful that it didn't. Either that or Harry wasn't surprised Peter survived. Spider-Man wouldn't die as easily as a normal person.

"So, could I have some?" Peter asked rudely.

"You barge into my house and expect me to just hand it over? Yeesh, next thing you know the web fluid might cease to exist," Harry replied.

"You wouldn't _dare_ ," Peter growled as he stood up.

"Don't even try, Parker. I've got bodyguards in my house now. If one of us yells or breaks something they're bound to hear it. They might even call the police."

"Bodyguards?" Peter said, confused.

"Yeah, bodyguards. Do you really think I was just going to let you beat on me forever? I'm sick and tired of lying about where all these cuts, bruises, and broken bones come from," Harry shot, gesturing to himself.

"To this day I still wonder why you haven't told anyone my secret," Peter said with clenched fists.

"Because it's leverage. I'm not going to waste it," Harry replied with a smirk.

Peter tried not to shift. He thought Harry was just being considerate. The Harry Osborn he knew as a kid contrasted from the one before him now. People changed. Peter was sure he was different, too.

After taking a deep breath, he once again asked, "Could I _please_ have some web fluid?"

Harry studied Peter for a moment before answering, "If you're willing to pay for it."

"What? Pay for it?" Peter exclaimed but tried not to yell, fearing the bodyguards.

"Don't push it or I'll make you pay for all the web fluid you've previously taken."

Peter shook his head. He knew Harry just wanted to get back at him.

Reluctantly he agreed and asked, "Okay. How much?"

"I'm not sure yet. That stuff has never been on the market before so I'd have to consult some people about what the pricing would be."

Peter struggled to keep his complaints to himself.

"Harry, I need some now," Peter said as politely as he possibly could.

"You can fight with one web shooter, can't you? Besides, you should try to conserve that stuff as much as possible and not waste it," Harry dismissed.

"I use it to travel," Peter protested.

"Take a cab."

"That costs money which I apparently need to buy this stuff now."

"Not my problem," Harry said, crossing his arms and grinning.

"You have no idea how badly I want to punch your smug face right now," Peter growled with one fist clenched and pointing a finger at Harry.

Harry sighed, "Then leave. I'll call you when I have a price. Until then, make do with what you have."

Peter wanted to push to get the webs sooner, but he decided against it. He would just have to manage without. As an adult he'd already managed without a lot of things.

Peter started to turn to leave, but asked, "Before I leave, who was that girl?"

Not wanting to act surprised, Harry narrowed his eyes into an even more intense glare.

"Why do you care? Is your love life so bland that you have to ask me about mine?" he shot.

Peter replied off guard, "No. I was just curious if you were seeing someone or just in a one night stand phase or something."

Harry gave him an annoyed look and didn't respond. Whoever she was, Harry didn't intend on sharing.

"Fine, I get it. _We're not friends anymore_ and all that bull shit," Peter mumbled angrily, staring down at the floor. "I guess I'll see you later, or something."

"Yeah," Harry scoffed, very much wanting Peter to leave.

Dying to escape Harry's venomous gaze, Peter quickly turned around and walked down the stairs in a sneaky manner. He left through the same window he came in through. As he left down the street he had an urge to look back at the mansion, however, he didn't want to awaken old memories. Biting the inside of his cheek, he continued walking away. He always hurt less if he walked away.


	7. Chapter 7

Running to college left Peter out of breath and ready to tip over at any given second. Harry refusing to give him web fluid the other day meant that he had to suffer through morning traffic. When he arrived at his first class of the day, biochemistry, some other students gave him weird looks as he stumbled into class gasping for air. Luckily, class hadn't started yet and he still had a couple minutes to spare. He sat in his seat towards the front of the room. Once the professor arrived, Peter had managed to start breathing normally.

"All right, I hope you all have your lab reports ready to hand in today. If you don't I will _not_ accept them any later than today. If you forgot it or didn't get to print it, get it to me ASAP after class today," the professor told the class.

Peter gulped. He couldn't remember if he put his report in his backpack or not this morning. He only thought about leaving earlier than usual to get to class on time. Getting into a fight as Spider-Man along the way didn't exactly help matters. Sticking his hand into his backpack, he breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. He had remembered his lab report. Happily, he turned it in along with most of the other students. As he turned in his paper, his professor pulled him off to the side.

"Peter, you're quite an exceptional student. Every one of your papers clearly reflects that. That's why I am referring you to an internship at Oscorp. I believe this would benefit you as a student tremendously," he informed Peter, handing him a piece of paper. "I've written a letter of recommendation for you already. I urge you to consider."

Speechless and confused, Peter slowly took the letter in his hands. An internship at Oscorp? Few people ever got that opportunity.

"Thank you so much," he replied joyfully, smiling at his professor. "I'll consider it."

 _Perfect_ , he thought to himself as he walked back to his seat. _As long as Harry doesn't have to pick interns, I'll get into Oscorp legitimately and be able to search for the web fluid without being suspicious._

Peter almost couldn't sit still in class from the excitement. As soon as the class ended he would go to Oscorp and apply for the internship. He wondered why he hadn't taken the opportunity to be an intern there sooner. Even when he found out Gwen was an intern there, he still didn't apply. He did not want to remember her here, but he'd suppressed his memories of her so much lately that they forcibly came back.

He remembered sneaking into Oscorp to find out more about his father. Gwen was there and led all of the new interns around. Everything about her had been so flirtatious. He couldn't believe no one was dating her. Maybe her father scared off all the other boys. He didn't care. He went right for her anyways. Then her father died because Peter made a stupid decision. He couldn't even keep the promise he made to the dying man. He and Gwen were off and on after that. Every time he felt too guilty he broke up with her. When he started to feel less guilty they'd get back together. She eventually got sick of that and proposed a 'just friends' option. That didn't work. They just sort of got back together anyways. Later, Gwen also died because he made yet another stupid decision.

Hot tears streamed down his face. He couldn't believe he was crying in biochem. Quickly, he wiped away his tears and tried his best to regain his composure. The professor hadn't noticed and continued on with his lecture. Peter opened up his notebook. He scribbled down some messy notes. Even if he felt like crap, he needed to pass-no-excel in this class.

"Are you okay?" a guy sitting next to him asked.

Peter kept his head down and replied back with a whisper, "I'm fine."

The guy kept his gaze on Peter for a moment longer before he turned back to his own notes. A couple hours more of class and Peter could go to Oscorp.


	8. Chapter 8

A woman carefully read through a stack of papers Peter had handed her. He never thought applying to be an intern as Oscorp would take so much paperwork. At least some was already done by his college professor.

The woman said, "All right, you're all set, Peter Parker. We'll email you when you're accepted into the program. Between you and me, you're practically guaranteed to get in. Most interns would kill for such high marks in science classes."

"Thanks," he replied, forcing a smile.

"Have a nice day."

As soon as he turned around, the corners of his mouth dropped. He started to remember some of the reasons he had avoided this place. It reminded him of his father. For years he believed that his parents up and left him. Peter loved science and finding solutions to complex problems, but he couldn't help but feel haunted by how his father had died. Norman Osborn had been after him. He sent people to hurt both of his parents.

Peter glanced up at the glass elevator. Harry was up there somewhere doing who knows what. Harry had caused the death of his girlfriend. Norman had caused the death of his mother and father. Who else would the Osborns take from him?

 _If Harry ends up being anything like his father, I might lose someone else_ , Peter thought to himself.

He found himself entering the elevator. The little visitor's sticker with his name scribbly written on it seemed to keep wandering eyes from staring at him for too long. Web fluid used to be in its usual little room. After the spiders had been killed off, it wasn't guarded as heavily. He'd only seen Oscorp scientists test it a couple times. No one really seemed to care for it.

Walking down a hallway, he thought, _Why would Harry just move it? Where would he move it to?_

Stopping dead in his tracks, Peter looked down at his feet. It had to be in the underground levels. However, the clearance needed for those levels was the highest clearance. Only Harry, Felicia, and maybe a few select others would have that.

He decided to give up for the day. For the time being, he needed a supply of money if he ended up paying for the web fluid. That meant it was another picture day for Spider-man.

Peter exited the elevator only to come face-to-face with Felicia. She simply looked on at him with those strange, glassy eyes. Awkwardly, he coughed and walked around her. He hoped she wouldn't tell Harry she had seen him. The last thing he needed was being denied this internship.

"Peter," she called from behind him.

He stopped dead in his tracks. He wasn't quite sure why when he could have just ignored her and moved on. Reluctantly turning to face Felicia, a guilty feeling came over him. It was like he was a kid caught scoping out the cookie jar.

"Y-yeah?" he replied awkwardly.

Felicia asked, "Have you, um, talked to Harry lately?"

The hesitation in her voice sounded off coming from her. He carefully watched the way her fingers tightly held her tablet and how her eyes conveyed a sense of worry. He'd never seen them show any emotion at all.

"A day or two ago. Why?"

"He's just been acting a little off." She paused for a moment, as she glanced at her tablet, and then added, "I need to go."

Peter watched her turn and walk to the elevator. He wasn't sure what she meant exactly and he didn't intend to stick around and find out. He needed to make some money for his web fluid. A lot of it. Fast.


	9. Chapter 9

"Okay, Spidey, you can do this. Find a criminal. Get some pictures of the fight. You get paid," Peter mumbled to himself, holding an ice cream cone.

He sat perched on a ledge, many feet above the hustle and bustle of the city. It had been easy to get good photos ever since he learned how to get his camera to track his movements. The hard part was keeping the fight where the camera was.

Spider-sense blaring in his head, he jumped back. A large bird flew past in just a blink. He watched it swoop down towards the city.

He mumbled, "Vulture?"

The Vulture had been locked up ever since Spider-man had taken down the Sinister Six. Getting himself ready to go after him, he knew he would have to punch first and ask questions later. He thwipped a web and followed the guy.

The Vulture headed straight towards Oscorp. The massive building had a slightly green tinge in the sunlight. Spider-man swung himself up and ahead of him and landed on his back causing the bird-guy to spiral out of control.

"Get off of me you imbecile!" he yelled, trying to slow his descent.

"And let you endanger the lives of hundreds of people? No way," Spider-man yelled back, turning the Vulture away from Oscorp and towards a nearby building's roof.

The two crashed landed there, though Spider-man jumped off and landed near the Vulture. He quickly planted his camera before the bird came to.

Dusting himself off, the Vulture said, "I'm not here to hurt innocent people. I'm here to get what I was promised. If that brat thinks he can get away with not paying me for my services, he's got another thing coming."

"So I take it Harry Osborn _isn't_ the one who let you out then?" Spidey asked.

"He would've kept me imprisoned for the rest of my life if he had his way. And you, too!"

The Vulture leapt up off of the roof and dove towards Spider-man. Spider-man dodged him. He swung at the bird as he came in a second time, but narrowly missed. The third time Spider-man thwipped a web onto him and attempted to steer him into a small water tower on another nearby roof. Catching on, the bird suddenly changed direction, causing Spider-man to lose his footing. Taking advantage of the moment, the Vulture swooped down and sliced at Spider-man with his sharp, metal wings. Spidey rolled to the side, but still received a small cut on his shoulder.

"Hey, watch it! I just patched a hole in this thing."

"Hmph, maybe you should invest in something more durable than a skintight suit," the Vulture snickered.

Spider-man punched up at the Vulture as he flew by again, hitting him in the head and sending him out of control. He landed on the roof again feet away.

"Maybe you need something lighter than that bulky armor to actually fight," Spidey shot back, standing on his back.

He quickly yanked off a panel between the Vulture's wings and started pulling out wires and all kinds of important looking stuff. The Vulture attempted to sit up and bat him off. Spider-man yanked out a large chip. When the armor suddenly pulled the bird back to the ground, Spidey smiled.

"Well, well, well, looks like this bird has been grounded," he laughed.

Rolling his eyes, the Vulture grumbled, "You're still not funny."

Webbing a cocoon around the villain, Spider-man left him hanging from a lamppost for the police to handle. He then grabbed his camera. Swinging a few blocks down, he then decided to stop and check his photos. There were tons of good ones of him punching the vulture, swinging him around, and standing on him. He was sure Jameson would choose the one with the Vulture slicing his shoulder, though. He loved making Spider-man look weak when he couldn't make him look evil. He'd probably add something about the Vulture being innocent or something stupid. Hell, maybe he'd say Spider-man broke him out just to fight him so he'd look good in the public eye.

Shrugging, he threw his camera into his backpack and swung towards home. It didn't exactly matter what JJJ did with the photos. As long as Peter Parker got paid well.


	10. Chapter 10

Harry awoke to soft sounds of stirring in his room. Opened curtains let in rays of sunlight. Turning towards the bathroom, he saw a woman with wet curly blonde hair ending bellow her shoulder blades. Tanned skin stuck out against the white bathrobe she wore.

"You're awake," Lily said, smiling and sitting next to him on his bed. "You were pretty wasted last night. Thought I'd bring you home and stay to make sure you were all right."

Still lying down, he squinted up at her. The light was burning at his eyes. He slowly sat up next to her.

"Yeah, I'm remembering bits and pieces of it all. I haven't snorted cocaine in years. Wish I had some aspirin or something," he groaned.

"I have a bit left from last night if you want it."

She grabbed a baggie containing white powder from the nightstand and gave it to him. He squished the bag for a moment. Smiling, he quickly dressed himself and dumped out the cocaine on his dresser. Lily watched as he pulled out his wallet from a drawer, took out a credit card, and began chopping up the clumps into a fine powder with the card. He separated it into several lines. Harry then rolled up a hundred dollar bill and used it to snort the powder.

He said gleefully, "Ah, much better. Thank you for that."

Lily walked over and began rubbing his shoulders.

She purred in his ear, "You're welcome. I only get the best."

"You're not going to become my dealer, are you?" he asked jokingly.

"Only if you want the pure stuff."

He turned around and put his arms around her waist. She gently wiped some powder from his nose.

"I wish I had more nights as great as last night."

"I can make that happen," she assured, bringing her face closer to his.

"Perfect."

Harry kissed her deeply, rubbing her cheeks with his thumbs. Lily backed up slowly while still holding onto him until she fell onto the bed. The two grinned at each other.

He told her, "I should be getting ready for work."

She quickly sat up. Using his shirt, she pulled his face down to hers. He lightly blushed.

"You'll be a little late today."

* * *

 **This chapter has been sitting around for months and somehow I forgot to upload it. Sorry about that. More to come soon.**


	11. Chapter 11

Three small web fluid cartridges sat on Peter's dresser. He prodded at one, frowning down at it.

"One more fight and I'm screwed," he mumbled to himself.

He hoped that Harry would've contacted him by now with a price. Jameson had paid him and his internship at Oscorp was going to be a paid one. He had money. Peter could only wait for so long, though. But if he tried confronting Harry about web fluid again he'd just get brushed off like the other times.

Conflicted, he glanced at his clock by his bedside. His photography class was going to start in an hour.

Peter quickly remembered why he preferred web-slinging over public transportation. The sweaty people, the waiting, and the cramped space. He never had to deal with this when he just thwipped through the city. If it weren't for Harry trying to squeeze money out of him just to spite him, he'd be out there as Spider-man. He'd have wind in his face and adrenaline rushing through his veins. That wonderful feeling of falling through the air then being swung up. Instead, he was stuck standing on the subway next to one guy who smelled like gym socks and a woman taking selfies every three seconds. Peter tried not to glare into the lens in the background.

Once in class, Peter took out his camera. He removed the SD card, inserted it into his laptop, and began sifting through photos. Today he was supposed to turn in a series with lights used to paint something, in a sense, in the image. By turning the shutter speed way down he could wave a light in front of the camera, draw out a word or a picture, and the camera would capture the whole movement as one image.

"How did you do that?" a girl asked from behind him.

He turned around to find a smiling redhead. She pulled up a chair and sat next to him to get a better view of the picture.

"Oh-oh this?" he said, pointing at the picture with a sparking light around an ad he'd found at a bus stop. "I just used a sparkler."

"That looks amazing. Where did you get the idea?" she asked, looking over at him.

Her light green eyes caught him off guard. A slim black tank top hugged her form. He found himself at a loss for words staring at her. Sharply looking away for a second, he regained himself.

"I, uh, um, well, I looked it up. Online." He mentally slapped himself for sounding so awkward. "There's this blog I follow with, you know, photography tips."

"What's it called?"

"A's Pro Photo Tips 101."

She whipped out her cell phone in a heartbeat. Her painted nails occasionally tapped against the touch screen as she looked it up. He reached over and tapped on the right one.

"That's the one," he said.

"Thank you. Is that Spider-man?" she asked, leaning forward and pointing at a photo in his folder.

"Oh, yeah, I get pictures of him, too. It's part of my job."

"You get paid to take pictures of Spider-man? That must be great."

"It pays the bills."

"Have you ever seen him up close? Or talked to him?"

"Maybe," he said with smile.

"You have no idea how jealous I am right now. I'd love to actually meet him. Or at least whoever designed his costume."

"Are you a costume designer?"

"I want to be an actress, but yeah I've dabbled in creating costumes for plays before."

"What was your name?"

"Mary Jane Watson," she said.

"Peter Parker."

He found himself staring at her again. Maybe it was the way her red hair framed her face or how it contrasted with her green eyes. She gave him one last smile before returning to her table.

Blinking a couple times, he made himself turn back to his laptop. He hadn't fumbled with words like that ever since Gwen. His fists tightened in his lap. And of course he had to ruin this nice moment for himself by remembering his dead girlfriend. Taking a deep breath, he assured himself that he wouldn't have another breakdown like he did in biochem.


End file.
